ABCCM requests votes for Transformation Village: help end homelessness with a $25,000 Neighborhood Assist Grant

Press release from ABCCM:

Asheville Buncombe Community Christian Ministry’s Transformation Village initiative, which when built will house hundreds of homeless women, children and intact families, is one of 200 national finalists for a $25,000 grant from the State Farm Neighborhood Assist program, and needs your votes to be in the top 40 to receive the grant!

Voting opens Wednesday, Oct. 26, and closes Friday, Nov. 4. Anyone with a valid email address can vote at www.neighborhoodassist.com to help bring $25,000 each to of the nonprofits, such as ABCCM, affiliated with the top 40 vote-getting causes. Anyone voting is allowed up to 10 votes per day. The final results will be announced on Wednesday, Nov. 30.

Transformation Village, which is currently in a capital campaign phase, will be a transitional living facility named in recognition of the transformative impact it will have not only on the lives of its residents, but on the community as a whole. It will provide homeless individuals and families with a safe and secure living space and the tools they need to eventually move on and live self-sufficiently. The facility will eventually replace ABCCM’s Steadfast House, which currently has 43 beds (including 10 beds for female veterans) and a waiting list of more than 300 women and children. Phase One of the project will triple ABCCM’s current capacity to house homeless women and children.

“Any child living on the streets or in a car with a mom is a horrible thing, and that’s why we ask you to support Transformation Village to provide a home to every child in Asheville and southern Appalachia,” said Reverend Scott Rogers, ABCCM’s executive director. “ABCCM is asking for your help with a vote that will make a difference and raise $25,000. Please take a moment each day to vote for Transformation Village.”

To learn more about Transformation Village, go to www.abccm.org/transformation-village/.

State Farm Neighborhood Assist, a crowd-sourced philanthropic program that empowers communities to identify issues in their neighborhoods, received 2,000 submissions this year. At least one cause was received from every state. The State Farm Youth Advisory Board, a group of 30 students who are passionate about social responsibility, reviewed the submissions and selected the top 200 finalists based on criteria they created.

“Neighborhood Assist is another example of State Farm helping life go right in communities all across the U.S.,“ said Kellie Clapper, State Farm assistant vice president. “The communities themselves play an important role in inspiring people to rally and vote for these important causes.”